Best 20+ Eco Friendly Products UK: Sustainable Living

There is a lot of information on the internet to do with eco friendly products in the UK and sustainable living so I wanted to compile my list of the best vegan and cruelty free options. Some great options for buying in the UK, check out Eco friendly products on Etsy for more.

However, I won’t be going into detail about reusable bottles, straws and reusable shopping bags because I feel like this type of eco-friendly products has been covered a lot all over the place so I’m going to try and include things you’ve likely not considered having plastic in them or around them. 

This post contains affiliate links which means I make a small profit if you buy through my link. I would never recommend something I didn’t believe in or wouldn’t buy myself, thank you for your support.

Bottles and bags

So to get it out of the way; myself and my son use Klean Kanteen water bottles, (Affiliate) they’re so sturdy, ours have taken a bit of a bashing but still going strong. There are so many other brands around now so feel free to shop around and find your favourite as it is something you’ll want to use for many years.

If you’re more of a fan of temperature controlled drinks such as iced coffee or soup etc you can buy something like this Stainless Steel Temperature Flask (Affiliate) which is really affordable from Beyond Topic, eco friendly products UK based.

I also have a stack of eco friendly reusable bags and have done for years so don’t really need to mention bags! They’re usually a great starting place for sustainable living.

Kitchen products

Laundry options

Eco Egg

For our laundry I use an Eco egg for most things that just need a freshen up like my clothes, towels and bedding. It’s very effective and probably the most eco friendly product for what I would call everyday washing but not so effective on stains. They stock a stain remover on their website but I haven’t used it to be honest. I tend to just powder if I have some washing with stains. 

The eco egg casing is plastic but once you have it you only need to replace the white mineral pellets approximately every 70 washes (if you’ve bought a starter kit) so you can use the same eco egg indefinitely.  All you have to do is put the pellets in, lock it and put in the machine on top of the washing. 

Eco eggs work by two different types of mineral pellets that rub together, draw the dirt out of your clothes and change the pH of the water. It’s all very clever and it changed the way I wash my clothes as I don’t feel like I need fabric conditioner anymore.  It’s also non biological and doesn’t contain any harsh irritants so is suitable for sensitive skin.

It’s worth noting that if you use an eco egg only in your washing machine you will need to ensure you clean the machine every now and then. You can do this with natural ingredients such as bicarbonate of soda, castille soap and vinegar. Check out this blog post for more information.

They also stock dryer balls antibacterial eggs and eggs specifically for white laundry so take a look around their website. I really love this brand and it’s a great option for sustainable living.

Washing Powder

For cloth nappies I use Fill washing powder (affiliate link) from andkeep an amazing online shop in Dorset, selling eco friendly products in the UK. I’m using an old Ecover box and the moment and filling it up because I am going through washing powder a lot due to washing cloth nappies daily.

You can buy it in a paper bag 500g or a jar with 500g. I hope they stock different pack sizes in the future though as they only have 500g which andkeep stock or 10kg on the Fill website, I wish they had a size in between. 

There are other options in the UK for eco friendly cleaners, this eco friendly household cleaning post talks about Smol Laundry tablets which come in cardboard and they’re vegan and cruelty free. The tablets are biodegradable and water soluble.

If you like to DIY home cleaners etc you can also make your own laundry liquid, check out this recipe from my sustainable blogger friend in the USA.

Cleaning sprays 

Andkeep also stock Ocean Saver drops (affiliate link) which I think is a great eco-friendly alternative to traditional cleaners. You either buy one of their reusable spray bottles or use your own and put a drop in the bottle filled with water and shake until it dissolves. 

I talk about eco friendly products in the UK mostly, on my YouTube channel. In the below video I talk about the drops and water filters.

I’ve actually bought something similar before for windscreen wash for the car so you don’t have to carry screenwash around in the back of the car. You just dissolve the tablet in water and then put it in. 

In these cleaning drops I’ve used the bathroom and multi purpose but they also stock some for glass and floors. 

Washing up brush 

I recently bought a brilliant Redecker bamboo and metal washing up brush from Andkeep (again I know but this shop is amazing for eco friendly products in the UK!), This eco friendly product has a really strong handle and you can buy replacement brush heads as well which I think is a brilliant idea. 

Most eco friendly bamboo brushes I’ve tried in the past have been rubbish to be honest, the bristles get crushed on first use but not with this one. The bristles are slightly soft as they are plant based but they work really well and I really love it.

Dish Soap

I really liked the idea of using dish soap they are eco friendly products that are virtually packaging free. They are also said to last much longer than regular washing up liquid.

I do enjoy using the above dish soap, I think it’s worth mentioning that this particular one does make glasses a bit smeary. However, it cleans everything well you just have to remember to wipe the sink or bowl down after, because it’s not as effective as washing up liquid at removing grease.

If you’re not ready to use dish soap, there are eco friendly products in the UK that come in glass. What we used to use was a Fill washing up liquid in glass bottles with a pump from Andkeep, as when you need more you just order the screw cap version, switch the pump over and recycle the old bottle. 

You can also order bulk Washing up liquid in 5 litres from Faith In Nature as well if you would prefer, you can save money and have less waste when you buy bulk products like this.

Sandwich wraps and boxes

There’s so many options for storing sandwiches with eco friendly products in the UK, I personally love the fabric wraps with Velcro or with wax that you can just wrap your sandwich in and go. These were very handy when I was doing a short shift at work and for the packed lunch my son had in nursery but now that I work from home and my son has school dinners I haven’t had to think about packed lunches for a while.

Please take note the wax ones can only be cold washed however and the Velcro ones are machine washable you just have to ensure you stick the velcro together so it doesn’t stick to anything else in the wàsh. 

I love the stainless steel bento containers with separate compartments. I think they are amazing and perfect eco friendly containers for picnics or a working day. 

However, they can be quite expensive in comparison with the plastic alternatives.

I’ve found these wheat straw lunch boxes (Affiliate) by Beyond Tropic UK. They’re such good value, currently priced at £11.99 and they look so cute.

Bathroom products 

Deodorant 

My best natural deodorant post covers it in more detail but I use a combination of glycolic acid toner and Nuud deodorant. Unfortunately, I haven’t found a fragrance free glycolic acid without plastic but I will keep hunting as there must be an eco-friendly version somewhere. 

Nuud deodorant although it doesn’t work very well for me on it’s own the packaging comes in a tube which feels like plastic but is made from sugar cane so it biodegradable which is pretty awesome. 

I recently bought a deodorant from Andkeep called Awake Organics in a tin which uses probiotic ingredients to keep the armpits clean and smell free and that is a great alternative to Nuud in my opinion. About the same price £11. to Nuud £12.50. 

Bamboo teeth cleaning 

I cover the full list of my teeth products in my Eco Teeth Cleaning post, however I use bamboo floss in a glass jar, Georganics oil swilling mouthwash in a glass jar and bamboo interdental brushes.  If you usually use a manual toothbrush the bamboo ones are a very good alternative just be careful to check what the company used for bristles as some still use plastic so that it appears eco friendly on the surface. 

Bamboo cotton buds/q-tips 

This is something that people often forget is quite wasteful as the normal ones have a plastic rod so quite wasteful and not at all an eco friendly product. Bamboo ones are brilliant and they obviously biodegrade so much better. I have heard that you can get reusable silicone cotton buds but haven’t tried them personally.

Bamboo make-up brushes 

If you wear make-up these brushes that I bought are brilliant, soft and easy to use. They are a brilliant way to reduce the amount of plastic in your makeup collection. Although they did come wrapped individually in plastic which upset me a bit. There are other bamboo brushes on the market that I wish I’d bought to be honest, this set from And Keep is beautiful!

Reusable cotton/bamboo pads for make-up removal/skincare

I feel like these are quite readily available in many places now. I actually use my old breast pads for this as they are the same size and I like to use what I have when I can. They work really well, I just put them in the wash in a wash bag once I get low and they dry really quickly. However, if you’d have access to that sort of thing, bamboo or cotton pads are a great alternative to makeup wipes.

Shampoo and conditioner

I feel like packaging free shampoo and conditioners are available in a lot of different places now whereas when I tried them initially they weren’t really, so I used Lush solid shampoo and conditioner and I really enjoyed them.

Currently I am using up some shampoo and conditioner that I bought for convenience after having a baby but I fully intend to go back to the eco-friendly products or the ‘no poo’ method as soon as I’ve run out. 

Shampoo & conditioner bars are definitely the best option for sustainable living but if you don’t find one you like, there are shampoos and conditioners in aluminium and glass like this one from Conscious Skincare (Affiliate).

Shower and bath

For eco friendly products such as shower gel and bath products Lush again steals the show as they have packaging free shower gels and bath bombs.  Personally I have found that as my skin can be dry, water only is enough to wash me in the shower. I understand this method would not suit everyone; it just works for me if I’m not doing strenuous exercise. 

This zero waste bathroom swaps blog post, also has some amazing ideas for switching your bathroom products to sustainable versions.

Menstruation

There are several different eco friendly products in the UK that you can use for menstruation, as follows: 

• In my post about Menstrual cups such as Mooncup or Me-luna cup I discuss this further, however there is a knack to using these but once you get used to it they’re great for containing the blood for hours. 
• Cloth sanitary pads my personal favourite eco friendly product for the lighter period days. You can get thin ones for a lighter flow or thick night time ones which are brilliant. 
• Period pants seem to have gained in popularity the last few years, they’re supposed to draw the blood away and they have a waterproof layer to keep it from your clothes. I haven’t tried them yet but do plan to. 

Miscellaneous

Plasters

If you live with a child then plasters are a must and of course most plasters contain plastic, especially the ones targeted for children. I have found bamboo plasters which are a brilliant eco friendly product in the UK, available at a lot of online shops and they even come in fun designs. They do tend to stick better than plastic ones anyway. 

Wrapping paper and string

For a few years now I have just been using brown paper to wrap all Christmas and Birthday presents and tied it up with string. You can reuse packing material paper, leaflets or magazines (as my mum did one Christmas) or buy a roll so cheap in craft shops or on Ebay and it looks so cute when it’s wrapped up.

Every Christmas I always make tags from old Christmas cards as well because it adds some sparkle and you’re just making use out of what you have. The bonus is it’s then all recyclable. 

With children’s presents you can add some bits of coloured paper made into shapes to stick on or get the children involved with decorating the parcel with drawings for a more personalised touch.

Recommended blogs to look at for more eco friendly tips.

Grateful Green Life

 Vegan Babe life 

I think that’s quite a list of my favourite eco friendly products in the UK, including some that are a bit more unusual for sustainable living!

Something not a lot of people are aware of as well is that we can also reduce our carbon footprint whilst on the internet.

Check out my Family Cloth post, for tips on using cloth instead of toilet paper as well.

Do you have any eco friendly products you’d like to share? Let me know in the comments, on Facebook or Instagram. If you’d like to put a face to the name, check out my YouTube channel.